Broadcast Beat Magazine 2018 NAB Show Edition - Page 81

path. Adding capacity should always increase
bandwidth, and you should have the ability to
utilize old and new drives in the same volume
to increase speed. Avoid systems that limit your
client count, or have you buying additional seat
licenses or server hardware to manage more user
connections. Instead, look for systems that have
multiple methods of connectivity. It’s also impor-
tant to choose a flexible storage network that can
eventually accommodate more speed than you
think you’ll ever need.
It’s all about accessibility
Accessibility can be a challenge based on the
workstation OS and revision you chose. Many net-
work systems will force everyone onto the same
OS revision for compatibility. This usually means
that they’re using OS features to provide the con-
nection, so they’re not completely agnostic.
•
•
•
antees the performance of the entire system
Building a functional network on dated proto-
cols is difficult for most facilities.
o Find a system that uses an optimized, non-
TCP sharing method.
Managing a network is tough, and if you farm
out the work, be prepared to pay.
o
Buying a turn-key system provides you a
direct line to the experts on your system
Over-engineering is costly, but the ability to
grow and adapt is critical
o Look for a product that satisfies your
growth pattern, and buy the size you need
now.
Try to find a system that has compatibility with
multiple OS revisions, because this ensures that a
change in the OS is unlikely to cause a problem,
and you won’t have urgent OS upgrades across
the facility to simply update your server software.
The resiliency of the network connection is also
important when considering reliable access to the
storage. If there is only one possible path to the
storage, or if the system requires multiple active
paths to function, it only takes a wiggle of a wire
to disconnect your clients. Look for solutions that
have connectivity failover, to provide another
path to the storage in case of an issue with the
primary, and systems that only require a single
connection to the storage to lower complexity.
In conclusion
When you decide on a turn-key shared storage
network, demand that the architecture is support-
able for at least 5 years, and get evidence of that
with systems in the field today. Planned obsoles-
cence, and quickly-moving product architecture
will leave you left out, and frozen in time.
Don’t let the hardware fool you; all network stor-
age is not the same.
• Performance is systemic, and bottlenecks will
migrate downstream
o Talk to someone that qualifies and guar-
Broadcast Beat Magazine • www.broadcastbeat.com • 81